Innovation tops agenda around UBC-Microsoft roundtable

Darah Hansen, Postmedia News04.12.2012

'What I have always found interesting is that people can use the same technology we have nowadays and just apply it in a new and innovative way and create something entirely different,' says Valerie Song, 19, a second-year business student at University of B.C., who attended a roundtable discussion Tuesday at UBC.Handout
/ PNG

Eric Gales, president of Microsoft Canada, talks to students about innovation.Glenn Baglo
/ PNG

Cloud computing will be responsible for one in six new jobs in the next three years, according to a survey commissioned by Microsoft, and conducted by...

VANCOUVER — Valerie Song is 19 years old and already knows exactly what she wants to do with her life.

The tech-savvy teenager and second-year business student at the University of British Columbia is looking to contribute to nothing less than world peace by altering our sense of physical distance and making it easier for us to share our thoughts and ideas.

"What I have always found interesting is that people can use the same technology we have nowadays and just apply it in a new and innovative way and create something entirely different," Song said.

"It's part of the reason I want to become an entrepreneur and see if I can change the world little by little using the tools that we already have."

It's precisely this kind of ambitious thinking that drew Eric Gales, president of Microsoft Canada, to Vancouver recently in a trip designed to both scout top talent and encourage creativity and curiosity among B.C.'s future business leaders.

Gales joined Murali Chandrashekaran, professor and associate dean at UBC's Sauder School of Business, and about 80 UBC students at a roundtable discussion at the downtown campus on the importance of innovative thinking and risk-taking in today's workforce.

"Innovation is not optional. It is essential to the survival of any company and any country in today's global economy," Gales said in an interview.

Innovation is a key word in UBC's vocabulary these days, too. This fall, the university is launching its newly revamped Master of Business Administration program to better prepare its students for real-world business. The changes also embrace new teaching models that build on a new generation's technological comfort, strong sense of social consciousness, environmentalism, collaboration and entrepreneurial spirit.

Under the program, students will have the chance to work directly for companies such as Microsoft under a public-private partnership model.

Chandrashekaran said the notion of "experiential learning" offers a perfect foil to more traditional academic studies by teaching students the limits of the applicability of theoretical concepts, and the value of compromise, negotiation and working with different companies and people around the world.

"In China, you talk to the businesses there — 75 per cent is good enough or 80 per cent is good enough. Innovate. Get three-fourths of the way there. Implement, refine and move on. (That is) very different from many of the other innovation models that have pervaded thinking in the U.S., for instance, which is 'Get it right the first time'," he said.

Gales applauded UBC's programming shift, noting that while talking about innovation and "thinking outside the box" is easy, "it is actually much more difficult to do."

"People need to be trained through experience, to be in the chaos of business where your survival depends on a new idea," he said.

Gales said fear of failure is the biggest barrier to business innovation. Companies and organizations that stay on top are those that encourage workers to try new and different things.

That's particularly true in the IT sector, which he described as a "super ruthless, tough industry.

"So we need people who are creative. We need people who are flexible. We need people who have a wide perspective on how to drive innovation, how to motivate people, who think differently and who are prepared to challenge the status quo," Gales said. "The rate of change is so high. If you take your eye off the ball for a minute, you can fall behind very quickly."

Students attending Tuesday's discussion session came armed with a variety of questions — the answers to which they hope will help them cut a more successful career path and perhaps even lead to the next Zuckerberg, Gates or Jobs.

As for Song — who, when she isn't studying, works as a UBC "campus guru" for Microsoft where she helps students and staff learn to optimize their tech devices — she was thrilled with the chance to meet with both Gales and Chandrashekaran, and pick up whatever pointers she could from them to apply to her own career aspirations as an entrepreneur.

"Being able to take something and create something of value from it, to me, is a really rewarding experience and I think it will be a lifetime goal for me," she said.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.